There are many different qualities that define greatness in someone, whether it be a good personality, strong leadership, or a good sense of humor. Maybe they are kind or compassionate. There are a wide variety of characteristics that make somebody great or memorable, but it all depends on the situation. As important as it is to have a good sense of humor, a great president will likely be remembered for their outstanding leadership. On the other hand, a great comedian will not be remembered because they were a quality leader. The same idea of situational greatness can be applied to writing. No single quality is the be all end all for great writing, but there are common themes across great essays. Some characteristics of the best essays are exceptional structure, artistic imagery, and writing that elicits empathy. Two essays that had exceptional structure were William Zinsser’s essay …show more content…
Throughout his writing, he presents his main ideas while providing evidence in the same sentence. Just as Zinsser used cluttering phrases in his topic sentence on cluttering phrases, Thomas uses examples of punctuation while simultaneously presenting his ideas in written form. In paragraph two of Thomas’s essay, he discusses the use and importance of commas while providing examples of their various uses and misuses within the paragraph. When Thomas writes “Better to use them sparingly, and with affection, precisely when the need for them arises, nicely, by itself” he uses a surplus of commas to demonstrate the opposite message of his sentence (160). The ability to incorporate the examples into their presentation of ideas is an attribute that makes Thomas and Zinsser writers that are truly great and worth